There seems to be a hazy lull between waking and when my body is ready to be fully productive. I am not an enthusiastic morning person but thanks to Mr. Second Helpings I almost always wake to the comforting smell of fresh coffee. Like a Folger’s commercial without the jingle, my eyes open a little wider and my mind gets a little clearer as I wrap my hands around a steaming mug of dark roast. After a few deep breaths I can start thinking about the day ahead; a day that shall begin with breakfast.

As regular readers now know, I generally whip up some oatmeal to start the day. Occasionally, I make more than we need for our meal and the leftovers go into a container to be reheated the following day. The problem with reheated oatmeal is it simply doesn’t have the same go-forth-and-conquer feeling as fresh oatmeal. Even with a splash of milk, day the day-old cereal tends to be a bit too sticky and gloppy for my taste. I’ll admit that I usually give it to The Little Helping while making a fresh batch for myself.

This all changed in February when my friend Venessa, who blogs at Kernels and Seeds, posted a recipe that transforms cold gloppy oatmeal into piping hot, fruit filled waffles! Hooray!

Last week after a few quiet moments with my morning coffee, I went to reheat some left over oatmeal. As I unenthusiastically reached for a bowl, I remembered Venessa’s creative recipe and skipped the cereal bowl in favor of a mixing bowl and my trusty box of Fiber One Complete Pancake Mix. Within minutes the iron was hot and the waffle batter was ready to go.

The oatmeal in question had been cooked with a little soy milk and seasoned the day before with vanilla, cinnamon, and cardamom but I sprinkled in a little ginger to round it out. The pancake mix suggests adding oil when making waffles but this is a case where swapping a little fruit works really well, so I mashed half a banana and mixed it in along with about 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder. Front and center in my refrigerator was a container of diced rhubarb leftover from baking cookies the day before, and a cup or so of the chunks got tossed in at the last minute. I love how forgiving this recipe is. Just get the amounts in the ball park and make sure the batter is thin enough to pour without being runny.

The medium-high heat setting on the waffle iron (4th out of 5 temperature options) turned them toasty brown with a little softness in the centers. I am sure a few moments in a warm oven would have firmed them up a little more. After topping with a few pieces of raw rhubarb and a drizzle of syrup The Little Helping and I smiled stickily all through breakfast.

If leftover oatmeal leaves you down in the dumps, please try turning them into waffles. You might start making extra on purpose!

Rhubarb-Oatmeal Pancakes

This recipe can be tweaked a little or a lot to use up your leftover oatmeal and make enough for your breakfast crowd. Toss in whatever spices sound good and play around with the fruit to match what you have on hand. Have fun with the process and enjoy the results. Yield – between 4 and 6 waffles depending on the thickness of the batter and amount of fruit and oatmeal used. From Oatmeal and Applesauce Waffles

Ingredients

1 cup cooked oatmeal (cooked with milk if possible)

1 cup pancake mix (such as Fiber One Complete)

3/4 cup water (add a little more if the batter is too thick)

1/2 banana mashed or vegetable oil per the instructions on the package

In a medium mixing bowl stir together cold oatmeal, pancake mix, and water. Add baking powder, spices, banana (or oil), and vanilla. If the batter is too thick to pour add more water a tablespoon at a time until it is thin but not runny – think cake batter. Stir in rhubarb pieces.

Give the waffle iron a quick spritz with non-stick spray or brush with a tiny bit of oil. Pour 1/2 cup of batter into the center of the waffle iron and cook as indicated by the waffle iron – about 5 minutes. Waffle should be brown with a slight crust when finished. If the center is softer than desired leave a minute or two longer or transfer to a warm oven while remaining waffles are cooked. – Repeat as needed.

Nutrition Information- Here’s the deal, there are several factors at play here the primary is how the left over oatmeal was cooked and the amount going into the waffles. When I make oatmeal I use 1/2 a cup of soy milk and 1/2 a cup of water. Assuming 5 cooked waffles and 1/2 a cup of soy milk in the oatmeal the numbers per waffle as printed above are: 118 calories, 2 g. fat, 29 g. carbs., 4 g. fiber, 4 g. protein, PP = 4